


The Making of Severus Snape

by Minxie



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: FEST: Santa's Lap (2007), KINK: Chan (implied), M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-01-13
Updated: 2013-01-13
Packaged: 2017-11-25 08:39:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,990
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/637070
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Minxie/pseuds/Minxie
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Ancient traditions go a long way in forming a future.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Making of Severus Snape

**Author's Note:**

> Written for the 2007 [Santa's Lap](http://asylums.insanejournal.com/santas_lap/3206.html) fest, prompt #75: To go to Hogwarts, students must be 'claimed' by a professor or an older student.  
> Beta: Jadzia7667

Severus Snape accepted the heavy envelope from his mother with shaking fingers. His eyes fell to the emerald green ink and he traced scrawl of his name and address.

"Go on, boy," his mother urged gently, "open it. No good can come by staring at your name."

"What if…" He stopped, swallowed convulsively, and then started again. "What if it says no? I might not know all I need to? Or my magic could be off? What if, since Father is a Muggle…"

"Enough, Severus," she interrupted. She pinched his chin between her thumb and forefinger and forced his eyes away from the parcel. Holding his gaze, Eileen Snape comforted her son the best she knew how. "You have nothing to fear, boy. You have learnt all that I have taught you. There will be no other first year more prepared for Hogwarts." Her hand dropped into her lap and she nodded towards the envelope. "Now open it, Severus. It is your way away from this life."

Severus schooled his features into a mask of boredom and, doing as his mother asked, broke the wax seal. Removing the stiff parchment, he took a deep breath and began to read.

 

__

_HOGWARTS SCHOOL of WITCHCRAFT and WIZARDRY_

 _Headmaster: ALBUS DUMBLEDORE  
(Order of Merlin, First Class, Grand Sorc., Chf. Warlock, Supreme Mugwump, International Confed. of Wizards)_

_Dear Mr. Snape,_

_We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find enclosed a list of all necessary books and equipment._

_Additionally, in accordance with the Ministry of Magic's current policy, as a Half-blood, you will need to acquire and bond with a male sponsor prior to September 1. All professors and students having achieved passing marks on OWL testing are qualified to take on a first year consort. If necessary, a list of such individuals can be obtained through the Ministry's Educational Reform Department._

_Term begins on September 1. We await your owl by no later than July 31._

_Yours sincerely,_  
Minerva McGonagall  
Deputy Headmistress 

 

"Consort? Sponsor?" Severus turned confused eyes to his mother. "Tell me this does not mean what I think it does."

"Now, Severus, just calm down." Eileen had known this would cause her boy grief but there honestly was no other way. Severus would pay the most for her mistake of being taken in by Tobias Snape's haphazard attempts at romance – he would have to make the choice of ignoring who he was, pretending the magic didn't sing through his veins or he would have to literally whore himself out for a year. She could only pray that his Master would be more humane than his father.

Severus rushed to stand up, his gangly limbs backing away from the one parent he'd thought loved him, the one who never let undue harm come to him. "You knew? You knew that I would… would… would have to be this and yet you still want me to go to your school for magic?"

Eileen stood up and dropped the glamour she habitually cast each morning. She tamped down her embarrassment as the bruises decorating her arms and back shimmered into being and said, "My choice, Severus, was to make you want your magical heritage. Trust me when I tell you, spending a year as a consort, protected by Ministry guidelines, is much better than spending more years here. Look," she demanded as Severus dropped his eyes to the floor. "Look at me. This is what I have become. You… you, my boy, have a chance at much more."

"At the cost of being someone's toy?"

"At the cost of being a consort for a finite period of time," she countered softly. "Think about it, Severus. Go to your room and weigh the subject once your anger has abated. Tomorrow will be soon enough for a decision."

Severus let the papers in his hand flutter to the ground unheeded as he raced by his mother and clomped up the stairs to his bedroom. The idea of Hogwarts had just become as oppressive as the actuality of Spinner's End.

***

Severus nervously toed the ground; his trunk was shrunken and hidden in his packet, packed with all he would for the school year.

"Are you ready, Severus?"

His mother's voice broke through his thoughts and brought his gaze away from the scarred wood. "Does it really matter, Mother?" Sighing, he dragged a hand roughly through his hair. "The choices, no matter which one I take, are rather harsh. Remain here, under Father's demented version of love and discipline, or sell myself out as a catamite to a stranger."

"Severus." Eileen's voice was strained, once again caught between pride at how precocious her son was and disgust at the fact that he'd never had a childhood because of her choices. "We have been through this too many times in the past six months. The protocol for wizarding sponsors has been in effect for centuries. It is not simply about the sex you seem so focused on. He will be your mentor, your friend, your…"

"Master," Severus snarled. "Do not attempt to gloss it over, Mother. Call it what it is."

"There is no talking to you about this," she huffed. "You leave for the social in a quarter hour, use the time to straighten your hair and construct a better attitude. Even if it is just a façade." Turning on her heel, Eileen balled her hands into fists and tamped down the gut reaction to throttle her only child. "And stop being so damnably stubborn, Severus," she added, stepping through the discreet side door and into the powder room.

"Social," Severus snorted. "More like an auctioning house." Following his mother's orders, he combed his ruffled hair into a semblance of neatness and forced a blank mask over his features. "This whole thing is ridiculous."

Hearing the hall clock chime the appointed hour, Severus grasped the Portkey in his hand and called out his leaving. "I will write you weekly, Mother, but will not return home for the holidays."

He blinked out of sight before he could see his mother – the one solid thing in his life – dissolve into tears. "May your way be an easy one, Severus," she whispered, flinching as the back door slammed and signaled her husband's return.

The Portkey deposited Severus just outside a large brick building seemingly built in the middle of nowhere. The soft hue of candle could be seen through the windows; shadows moved around in what passed for cordial conversation, but nary a sound could be heard. He wondered yet again if the end truly justified the means.

"Half blood from Spinner's End?" Startled from musings, Severus turned a cold glare towards the oddly dressed wizard and nodded curtly. "Step to the side then, young man. Others are due in after you."

Severus bit back the snarl and trudged up the worn path. "Absolutely ridiculous," he grumbled, his steps slowing as he reached the run of stairs leading to the entrance.

"Not entirely."

Severus stopped and spun around, his wand dropping automatically into his hand. "Wh… who are you?"

A tall, aristocratic blond stepped out of the shadows. The stranger's appearance, Severus noted enviously, matched the cultured drawl perfectly. "Lucius Malfoy, Slytherin House seventh year."

"Do you honestly believe that there is value to this?"

Lucius snorted and stepped closer, his hand still extended in introduction. "Perhaps if you followed more convention, such as introducing yourself when appropriate, I would agree to the ludicrous nature of following such ancient customs. However…"

Twin spots of color rose high on Severus' cheek. "Begging your pardon," he replied, chastened. "Severus Snape, hopefully to be sorted into Slytherin House."

A look of doubt flashed across Lucius' face before the mask of indifference reappeared. "And why would you wish to be sorted into Slytherin, Severus Snape?"

"My mother was in Slytherin," he snapped defensively.

"Yet she married a Muggle. How disquieting."

Severus bit back an angry retort. "Is that likely to held against me?"

"No more than necessary," Lucius replied evenly. "Would you care to continue this conversation inside, perhaps over a drink or two?"

Severus canted his head in agreement and trailed a safe distance behind Lucius. He was shocked by the amount of regard given to Lucius Malfoy. Crowds parted, a table emptied, and drinks appeared all with nothing more than a single cocked pale eyebrow.

"They are afraid of you," Severus stated quietly.

"They are," Lucius corrected, "afraid of my connections. The Malfoy family has long been involved n the running of the Ministry. What a Malfoy wants, a Malfoy gets."

Severus boldly met Lucius gaze and asked, "Is this," and he waved a hand between the two of them, "something you want, then?"

Lucius gave the question a fair amount of consideration before answering. "I will only admit to being intrigued at the present."

With a huff, Severus' lip curled into a fair facsimile of a sneer. "Then if it is not too much to ask, please be quick in your decision as I do not have the luxury of sitting around and making nice all night, Malfoy or not."

Lucius tilted his head back and roared with laughter. "I do believe, Severus, that it would serve my interest to keep you rather close to me. You have the makings of a formidable opponent." Lucius paused and raised his Firewhiskey to his lips. With a small smirk, he asked, "Shall we negotiate?"

***

Severus looked at the parchment, the words blurring as he battled against an embarrassing attack of emotion. Crying, he told himself, was unacceptable. Lucius and his father, Abraxas, stood by silently and waited. Slowly, Severus won the struggle with himself and held his head high, eyes clear and focused.

"Impressive, boy," the elder Malfoy commented sincerely. "Not many first years have that much control."

Severus fingered the contract and pushed hard at the tendrils of doubt swimming through him. "It is a fair…" 

"I'd say it is, boy," Abraxas snapped. "Now, reread it carefully before you sign it."

"Yes, sir," Severus mumbled as he picked up the contract again, internally ticking off all the key points.

New robes, all bearing the Malfoy crest. All needed textbooks and supplies. Tutors, if necessary. A private set of rooms connected to both the Slytherin common room and Lucius' rooms. A monthly stipend for personal use. Invitation to the Malfoy grounds for all school holidays during the year. A first year that could, very possibly, put Severus in a position of power for all those coming after it.

In exchange for two things: free use of his body for Lucius, within very specific boundaries, and an audience with Lord Voldemort, a political upstart Severus had never heard of before.

The meeting did not worry Severus in the least; he could listen to anyone prattle on and pay them no mind. Sex, on the other hand, was a decidedly fearsome thing. Lucius had, however, guaranteed Severus time to grow accustomed to him; while Lucius expected Severus to be available to him every night, he'd promised no penetration until after Severus' birthday in January. A concession that had sent Lucius' father into a spluttering fit.

Nodding, more for himself than the others in the room, Severus picked up the quill and, with a steady hand, scratched his signature across the bottom. As the scroll rolled and glowed with inherent magic, Abraxas opened a side door and invited Lord Voldemort into the study.

"M'Lord," both Malfoy's intoned, bowing in front of the man in total deference. Over their backs, Lord Voldemort searched the room, finally finding the slight form of Severus Snape standing along the shadows. Severus met the harsh red eyes of the stranger with a barely stifled gasp; the sense of foreboding returned, even stronger than it had been before.

Perhaps the sex wasn't what Severus should have been worried about after all.

  
_fini_


End file.
